. >>> tributes from the pentagon, white house, and gulf war buddies after the passing of stormin general norman schwarzkopf. and teachers learning how to shoot in case a gunman walks into their classroom. the man offering lessons were free. "starting point" begins right now. friday, december 28th. and our starting point, the pace in's economy and your take home pay on the chopping block. four days remain before the u.s. goes over the edge. that means tax hikes and spending cuts that could trigger another recession. congressional leaders will meet today at 3:00 p.m. eastern time. the full house not even expected to return to work until sunday. here is the guest list for today's showdown. the president, vice president biden, senate majority leader harry reid and house minority leader nancy pelosi on the democratic side. house speaker john boehner, mitch mcconnell representing the republicans. brianna keilar live from washington. what do we expect to happen today? any new offers from the president or house speaker? >> we don't know. right now, all eyes on the senate to see what senate major